Community colleges start classes, but it can be hard to get into them

Jordan Gootkin reaches the head of a line that leads out the door of the administration building on opening day at Moorpark College on Monday.

School started Monday at Moorpark, Oxnard and Ventura colleges with some students still trying to get the classes they need, especially if they didn't register as soon as they could.

"You can't wait until the last minute," said Rey Polanco, 29, who is attending Ventura College, where students waited in lines Monday to register for classes, get ID cards and talk to counselors. "If you wait until the last minute, it gets really bad, and it's hard to get the classes you want to take. I've done it before, and it's not good."

At Moorpark College, students stood in a line Monday that stretched outside the administration building, waiting to get parking permits and take care of other business. Others drove in circles in the parking lot, trying to find a spot as the fall semester began.

For a first day of school, it was "absolutely typical," said Brandon Eaton, 23, one of the students waiting in line.

"You just kind of go with it," Eaton said.

Enrollment was up slightly over last year at Moorpark and Ventura colleges but down at Oxnard. Ventura grew by 1.5 percent, to 12,705 students. Moorpark grew by 0.48 percent, to 14,543. But Oxnard, which has the smallest enrollment of the three campuses, fell by 3.18 percent, to 6,914 students.

Like the other campuses, Oxnard College has narrowed its offerings primarily to courses that lead to a degree or allow students to transfer to a university, President Richard Duran said.

"The simple fact is, because of budget cuts, we're not offering as many classes as we have in the past," Duran said.

Oxnard also cut remedial classes for students more than two grades below college level, said James Meznek, chancellor of the Ventura County Community College District. Moorpark and Ventura colleges cut those classes last year, he said.

"With UC and Cal State turning students away, we have college-ready students who can't get in," Meznek said.

Funding for community colleges was cut by $400 million for this school year. The colleges could face additional cuts if tax revenues don't come in as expected, Jack Scott, chancellor of California Community Colleges, said in a teleconference Monday morning.

"The financial situation is dire, and we don't see it getting any better soon," Scott said. "In fact, it may get worse in December if the trigger cuts are made."

If the state does cut funding further, the Ventura County college district plans to dip into its reserves, Meznek said

Daniel Miller, 19, who plays football at Ventura College, has felt the budget squeeze already. Miller got the classes he desired but not always at the times he wanted.

"I had to do some adjusting," Miller said. "I wanted early classes, but they were all full. I'm not working now because of football, but if I were, it would be even harder to get classes. I feel bad for people who have full-time jobs, school and other responsibilities."